Inslee loosens restrictions on religious services statewide

WASHINGTON — Gov. Jay Inslee announced Wednesday that Washington would be easing restrictions on religious gatherings as the state moves forward with its reopening plan.

Services covered under the new guidelines include all worship services, religious study classes, religious ceremonies, religious holiday celebrations, weddings and funerals.

It prompted Seattle’s Catholic Archdiocese to allow any of its 144 parishes to potentially reopen this Sunday. Medical experts told KIRO 7 the restrictions should make worshippers feel safe to attend.

Dr. Paul Pottinger, professor of infectious disease at the University of Washington, said the limited gatherings are not risk-free, but infections should be limited by safety measures.

“If you’re healthy, and you chose to go, keep your distance. And you wash your hands, and you cover your face. It’s about as good as it gets,” Pottinger said.

There will be major restrictions on services. There can be no choirs during gatherings. And depending on the county, your services may not even be indoors.

In “Phase One” areas, services must be held outdoors on the house of worship’s property, with up to 100 people, and everyone must social distance and wear a mask.

In “Phase Two” areas, houses of worship may have services indoors at 25% capacity — which means no more than 50 people.

While some religious leaders applaud the opportunity, others say they will not open their services.

“It will not change anything that we do,” said Pastor Tor Berg of First Lutheran Church of Bothell.

“We have so many vulnerable people,. I just don’t see how you can do it safely,” he said.

Even though people will be allowed to gather again, Seattle’s archbishop cautioned about the reality of safety and the importance of restrictions.

“It’s important for us to realize we could be a carrier of this virus and not even know it,” said Archbishop Paul D. Etienne. “It’s just not fair to our community to bring something back, and it’s not fair to the place where we might visit if we are bringing them this unwelcome visitor.”

Groups holding services are strongly encouraged to keep a log of attendees for at least two weeks in case an outbreak happens.

“If an outbreak occurs, this information may be critical to help save lives,” Inslee said.

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